Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today demanded that the Union government must give ‘Royalty on water and food grains’ to the state on the pattern of the same given to other states for supplying coal and other minerals in the country. Interacting with the media persons on the sidelines of a conference to mark the Shaheedi Jor Mela here today, the Chief Minister said that the hard working and resilient farmers of the state had over exploited the only available natural resources of the state in terms of water and fertility of the soil to make the country self reliant in food production. However he bemoaned that this immense contribution of the state’s farmers’ has never been recognized by the country. Mr. Badal said that it was the high time that the nation must repay the peasantry of the state by giving them royalty on water and food grains supplied to the country. On a query regarding the possibility of Shiromani Akali Dal contesting the Lok Sabha polls from outside the state, the Chief Minister said that any decision regarding it would be taken after thorough deliberations with the BJP. Earlier addressing a mammoth gathering during the conference, the Chief Minister said that the single point agenda of the Shiromani Akali Dal was to make Gujarat Chief Minister Mr. Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister of the country, so that a new era of unprecedented development could be ushered in the state. He said that the ensuing rally of Mr. Modi in the month of February would act as a ‘death knell’ for the Congress as the massive response to rally would wipe out the Congress from the country. Mr. Badal said that the coming Lok Sabha polls would be decisive for the state as voters would have a chance of either making or marring the future of the state. “All of you must take inspiration from the voters of Delhi, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh to teach the corrupt and inefficient Congress party a lesson by routing them out of power from centre” he added. Coming down heavily on the Congress party, the Chief Minister said that due to the weakness of the Congress led UPA government at the centre the external and internal sovereignty of the country was in peril. He said that while on external front our neighboring countries were flexing their muscles by violating the border norms, internally the country was facing severe challenges like Naxalism. However, Mr. Badal said that instead of tackling them, the inefficient Union government had been a mute spectator to these problems.
The Chief Minister further said that due to wrong policies of the Congress, India which was once known as a ‘Golden Sparrow’, today leads the world in poverty. He said that though our country has been blessed with a bounty of natural resources but today it was confronting a number of social maladies like poverty, unemployment, starvation, illiteracy and others. “This government has no moral right to remain in power as it has failed on all the fronts” added Mr. Badal.Training his guns against the Congress, the Chief Minister said that the successive Congress governments at the centre have meted out step motherly treatment with the Punjab by denying it of Punjabi speaking areas, legitimate share in river waters and even its capital. He said that the Congress has inflicted a deep wound on Sikh psyche by irrelevantly meddling in their social, political, economic and even religious matters. Mr. Badal said that no Punjabi could ever forgive Congress for its dubious role in executing anti Sikh riots and attacking Sri Darbar Sahib in 1984. He said that denial of OBC status to the Jatt Sikhs of the state has once again exposed the anti Punjab stance of the Congress party.
The Chief Minister further lamented that the Congress party has always conspired to derail the progress and development of the state adding that due to the ill conceived policies of the successive Congress governments at the centre the agriculture and industry of the state has been ruined. However he said that despite of the hostile attitude of the Congress governments at the centre, the SAD-BJP alliance government has always strived hard to make Punjab a leading state in the country. Mr. Badal said that though the Congress has left no stone unturned to break the backbone of the farmers of the state by hiking the cost of agricultural inputs but in order to give respite to them the SAD-BJP government had provided free power worth Rs 6000 crore to the farmers.The Chief Minister said that that their government has worked hard for ensuring welfare of every sections of the society and pro-poor policies like Shagun, Atta-Dal, Dr. Hargobind Khurana, Mai Bhago Istri Vidya, Bhagat Puran Singh Sehat Bima and other schemes were a testimony to it. While announcing that the new Atta-Dal scheme would be launched in the state within a month,
Badal said the small and marginal farmers of the state would be brought within the ambit of this scheme, in which they would be given Atta at a rate of Re 1 per kg. He further said that the work of making cards for the 32 lakh beneficiaries, which was the double of existing 16 lakh ones, of this new scheme was being done on war footing and would be completed soon, after which this scheme would be formally unveiled.Paying floral tributes to Mata Gujar Kaur and younger Sahibzadas Baba Jorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh, the Chief Minister said that the supreme sacrifice made by them at a tender age hardly has any parallel in the other part of the world. He said that great Sikh Gurus had taught them to stand against oppression, tyranny and injustice due to which the Punjabis had played a vanguard role in the national freedom struggle and to safeguard the motherland from any sort of aggression.
Prominent amongst those present on the occasion included Cabinet minister Mr. Surjit Singh Rakhra, Rajya Sabha MPs Mr. Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and Mr. Balwinder Singh Bhunder, state BJP President Mr. Kamal Sharma, former Union Minister Mr. Balwant Singh Ramoowalia, former MP Prof. Prem Singh Chandumajra, former Minister Jathedar Tota Singh, MLAs Dr. Daljit Singh Cheema and Justice (retd.) Nirmal Singh, Advisor to CM Mr. Maheshinder Singh Grewal, SGPC Member Mr. Karnail Singh Panjoli, Special Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Mr. Ajoy Kumar Sharma besides SAD-BJP leaders and workers.